OVERVIEW: GER vs ITA

~PLAYERS’ QUOTES

Andrea PIRLO (ITA), Budweiser Man of the Match(ITA)
It was a fantastic game, absolutely overflowing with emotions. It was a childhood dream for me to play in a semi-final. I think that we earned our win today. We created a lot of chances, and we also definitely had the luck we needed.

Miroslav KLOSE (GER)
We are obviously incredibly disappointed. It was an even contest and both teams had their chances. Well done to the Italians. They were clever on the break and scored two lovely goals. We can still be proud of what we have achieved.

Lukas PODOLSKI (GER)
We were just two minutes away from penalties. We created the better chances over the course of the match, and in the second half, we had three absolutely clear-cut chances. I’m not making any accusations or complaints, though. That’s just the way football is.

Philippe LAHM (GER)
I don’t think that we played worse than Italy today. It’s a bitter pill for us to swallow. We concentrated on one thing and kept our focus right until the end, except for that one attack of theirs. We definitely want to win the Third Place match though.

David ODONKOR (GER)
Of course we’re disappointed and sad, because we had set our sights even higher. The Italians played well, but so did we. It’s a pity that we lost the way we did in the last few minutes.

Bernd SCHNEIDER (GER)
We ended up being punished right at the death. It’s really disappointing, because we only made that one mistake. I’ve no doubt that it’ll be tough to pick ourselves up again now, but it was great, the way the crowd still cheered us on when we went one down. I don’t know, it’s difficult to say whether we can really be proud of ourselves.

Per MERTESACKER (GER)
We could have won today. Of course we knew that Italy would be even tougher than the teams we’d played before, but I still think that we did what we set out to do. We weren’t looking beyond this match.

Christoph METZELDER (GER)
We just didn’t take our chances. Everyone is really disappointed. I’ve already been through a similar experience before. Coming third in a World Cup would be wonderful and we’re going to do all we can to win the Third Place match.

Tim BOROWSKI (GER)
We just couldn’t step it up a notch, even though we gave it all we’d got up front. Italy were simply that little bit tougher than the Argentinians. At the end of the day, we just couldn’t quite raise our game. We could have gone all the way.

Gianluigi BUFFON (ITA)
We wanted to reach the Final and we’ve done it. (Marcello) Lippi made sure we were really up for it. I thank my team-mates for having scored two wonderful goals. I started to think about penalties from the beginning of the second half. All our wins are down to team spirit. They say Italy reach the Final every 12 years, and we’ve done it this time as well. Now we hope to go on and win.

Alessandro DEL PIERO (ITA)
You could all see how happy I was when I scored. We were desperate to win. The quality of this team lies in the strength of the squad. I’m not thinking about Sunday yet, I’m going to enjoy this moment and reflect on what we’ve done up to now. The job isn’t finished yet though.

Fabio GROSSO (ITA)
What a feeling and it’s because of our team spirit and the work we’ve done. The match was very hard. We were already thinking about penalties when luckily I scored. I shed tears of joy, I just couldn’t believe it. The Final will be just as difficult and memorable. I dedicate the goal to my wife, son and everyone else who wants the best for me.

Gianluca ZAMBROTTA (ITA)
We’re happy, it’s what we wanted and it’s a great feeling knowing we’re in the Final. They put us under pressure but we also created lots of chances. At the end of the day, we’re a great team and deserved to win.

Luca TONI (ITA)
We played a great game even though they did put us under lots of pressure. Our team spirit brought us victory. To win in front of such a partisan crowd is something to tell your grandchildren about. We’ll concentrate on the Final now. We want to win it!

ITALY WON 2-0 AGAINST GERMANY!

German dreams of reaching the FIFA World Cup™ Final on home soil died in Dortmund as two goals in the final moments of extra time carried Italy into the Final as 2-0 semi-final winners on Tuesday, 4 July 2006.

With a penalty shoot-out looming, Fabio Grosso broke the deadlock in the 119th minute as he curled a left-footed shot past the despairing dive of Jens Lehmann from the right side of the penalty box. Substitute Alessandro Del Piero made sure of Italy’s place in the Final when he beat Lehmann from close range in added time at the end of the extra period.

Italy now advance to their first FIFA World Cup Final since 1994 and their sixth overall. They will face the winners of Wednesday’s Portugal-France semi-final in Berlin’s Olympiastadion on Sunday, 24 hours after Germany have contested third place with the losers of that match in Stuttgart.

The match:
5′: In a quick-paced, keenly-contested opening to this match, the first effort on goal came from the Italians, with Francesco Totti firing in a 30-yard free-kick that skipped up off the wall and, with Germans hearts in mouths, landed in the arms of a grateful Lehmann.

8′: Terrific close control from Miroslav Klose helped create Germany’s first chance of the match, with Lukas Podolski picking up the ball from his strike partner and teeing up Michael Ballack for a right-shooted shot that swerved wide of the post.

12′:With the atmosphere electric inside the stadium in Dortmund, Germany gave their fans yet more to cheer with a sharp attack that ended with Podolski rifling in a powerful shot well blocked by the ever-reliable Fabio Cannavaro.

16′: Having played some neat possession football in the opening quarter-of-an-hour, Italy carved out their first opportunity of note when a defence-splitting Totti pass sent Simone Perrotta racing in on goal. The Roma midfielder’s touch was heavy enough, however, to allow Lehmann to race alertly from his goal and smother at the on-rushing Italian’s feet.

34′: A glorious opportunity went begging for the hosts after Klose threaded through Bernd Schneider, unmarked and bearing down on goal on the right-hand edge of the box. The in-form midfielder’s shot did not lack power but it fizzed over the crossbar, albeit by no more than a few inches. The German fans responded by raising the decibel level yet further.

41′: Italy, having weathered a storm of German attacks, began to create some half-chances of their own, the best of which saw Camoranesi head just over from an inviting, outswinging Andrea Pirlo free-kick.

Klose, but no cigar:
50′: The hosts began the second half at a remarkable tempo and Klose, in typically positive fashion, bulldozed his way through the heart of Italy’s defence only to be denied by the bravery of Buffon, who dived to save at the striker’s feet.

51′: Play immediately flowed to the other end, where an incisive through-ball from Perrotta picked out Grosso, who had run from deep to spring the German offside trap. However, the full-back then appeared to be caught in two minds as he found himself in unfamiliar territory, and with the goal at his mercy, he delayed pulling the trigger long enough to allow Lehmann to swoop in and make the save.

61′: Podolski created a chance out of nothing, turning Marco Materazzi inside-out to leave himself with a clear sight of goal. His shot was well-struck, but for the umpteenth time at Germany 2006, Buffon came to Italy’s rescue with a superb reflex save. From the rebound, Arne Friedrich blazed over, and another glorious chance had passed the hosts by.

73′: Having watched his side dominate the second half, but appear to run out of ideas in the final third, Jurgen Klinsmann reversed the change he made to his starting line-up by bringing off Tim Borowski and putting on the more attack-minded Bastian Schweinsteiger.

78′: A long period of inactivity for both goalkeepers ended when Lehmann was called on to deal with a speculative long-range effort from Pirlo, a task he performed with impressive self-assurance.

82′: Michael Ballack wasted a promisingly-positioned free-kick, curling high and wide from the edge of the penalty area after Cannavaro was adjudged to have fouled Podolski. Seconds later, Klinsmann attempted to inject pace into his team’s attacking play by thrusting on David Odonkor in place of Schneider.

85′: Perrotta looked to have broken clear of the German defence with a perfectly-timed run, but Lehmann was smartly off his line and confidently fisted the ball to safety.

Extra time:
91′: Alberto Gilardino came closer than anyone before to breaking the deadlock. Bursting in from the right, he made his way to the byline before jinking back on to his left foot and squeezing in a shot that beat Lehmann only to come back off the inside of the keeper’s left-hand post. Germany breathed again.

92′: Less than 60 seconds later, a corner was only half-cleared and Italy rattled the woodwork for the second time in a minute, with Zambrotta smacking in a sweetly-struck 20-yard drive that left the crossbar shuddering on its way over.

105′: With the last touch of the first period of extra time, Podolski spurned a glorious opportunity, heading wide substitute Odonkor’s cross from a terrific position, unmarked some ten yards from goal.

111′: An incredible moment of tension appeared to pass in slow motion as another Italy substitute, Del Piero, found himself faced with Lehmann but just could not find the angle to squeeze the ball home. Germany then swept immediately to the other end, where Podolski, on the left-hand edge of the penalty box, forced a magnificent one-handed tip-over from Buffon.

114′: With the action now more entertaining that at any stage of the match, some neat built-up play in and around the German box ended with Del Piero hooking a disappointing right-foot shot wide of the far post from 20 yards.

118′: Pirlo drifted in from the right and forced a superb save from Lehmann with a ferocious left-foot shot from 25 yards.

119′: The German keeper could only divert the ball round the post, however, and from the resultant corner, Pirlo gathered possession at the edge of the box and teed up Grosso for a superb first-time left-foot shot that curled just inside the far post. (0-1)

120+1′: As the hosts pushed desperately for an equaliser, a slick and speedy Italian breakaway ended with Gilardino playing a sublime reverse pass into the path of Del Piero. Opening out his body, the Juventus striker’s finish was nothing short of perfect, with the ball sent arcing into the postage stamp corner. Italy were through.(0-2)

In conclusion:
Only a couple of superbly-executed Italian goals could separate these two very evenly-matched teams on a night of high drama in Dortmund. Once again, Marcello Lippi’s side defended magnificently and the superb Buffon has still to concede a goal at Germany 2006 to an opposition player. However, while it is the Azzurri who march on to the Final, Germany - beaten in Dortmund for the first time ever - can reflect on their FIFA World Cup campaign with pride, having played throughout with spirit and skill in abundance.